‘Warehouse business Huboo lost £200k of my stock’

A business owner who outsourced his warehouse operations has told the BBC the logistics company has lost more than £200,000 of his stock.

James Symons, from Box, Wiltshire, sells pool cleaning products and used the company Huboo, which has locations in Bristol and Wiltshire, to store his products between June 2022 and June 2023.

“Orders would go missing, or stock would go missing, and it was getting to the point where no orders were going out,” he said.

A spokesperson for Huboo, which was saved from administration at the end of December, said clients are its main priority and it is “moving forward with new leadership and fresh funding”.

Huboo, set up in 2017 by co-founders Martin Bysh and Paul Dodd, offers warehouse services for multiple companies, who pay it to leave stock in its sites and deal with orders and deliveries on the companies’ behalf.

But Mr Symons – who said he has prepared a legal case against the company – said he started to notice that orders went missing without explanation.

“This was in the peak of my season so I had really angry customers because it’s really time-sensitive when you’re dealing with chemicals for swimming pools and hot tubs,” Mr Symons said.

“It left my business in limbo because I couldn’t ship anything out.”

Mr Symons said that in order to save his business, he decided to change providers, but after he asked for the stock back, only half of it was returned.

“I can see this on their own systems, it shows me how much they have and how much I’ve sent in, and the numbers are really out,” he said.

“They wanted me to sign a non-disclosure agreement to get my stock back.”

The firm, which sponsored Bristol City men and women, Bristol Bears men and women and the Bristol Flyers for the 2022-23 season, recently admitted in a statement that “the logistics sector has recently faced challenges”.

It was saved from collapse in a buyout from investors Baaj Capital and Atalla Capital (AB Capital), adding in a statement that this “fresh investment” would “secure its future”.

A spokesperson for the company said: “The opportunity presented in the recent acquisition of Huboo provides a good news story with over 600 local jobs saved and a brighter future for a company with outstanding customer satisfaction scores.

“The core business is moving forward with new leadership and fresh funding to continue the job of providing a first-rate service to our suppliers and clients alike.”

When questioned specifically about Mr Symons’ concerns, they added: “Matters related to the period before the acquisition on December 23rd are not a matter for the new senior team.”

Following the acquisition announcement, co-founder, Paul Dodd, said in a statement: “This investment ensures the continued operation of Huboo, safeguarding jobs and partnerships with our valued suppliers and clients.

“We are committed to working closely with all stakeholders during this period of transition.”